Sunday - Zoo Thoughts

created by Leigh Anne Eck
at A Day In The Life 

        I'm writing haiku and haiku-related poetry this month. Focus on the out of doors and on word choice is both a challenge and fun.  I'm also grateful that some of us are supporting each other, sharing on twitter with the hashtag #DigiPoetry, created by Margaret Simon, of Reflections on The Teche. Find the many Poetry Month offerings rounded up by Jama Rattigan at Jama's Alphabet Soup.  

Here is today's offering:

11)

penguin pastime,

perambulating -

zoo time - slow time

Linda Baie © All Rights Reserved

My Poetry Madness Poem - Slice 17

    The March Slice of Life Challenge is with Ruth and Stacey at the Two Writing Teachers blog 

As I wrote earlier this week, I participated with 63 other Poets on the internet in a kind of Ode to the NCAA March Madness basketball tournament, where we wrote children's poems for Ed DeCaria's Madness! 2012 (Kids' Poetry. Under Pressure.)

Visit the webpage. Look at the results of the pairings, and read all the wonderful poems that were written.  We were each given a word as a prompt, where we had to write a maximum of 8 lines that included the word at least once.  My word was paternity. I've been reading about more the emphasis being made on non-fiction writing so immediately thought I would write a non-fiction poem, hence the work about penguins (a favorite paternal story).
 I competed against a published writer extraordinaire named Donna Martin and lost by just a few votes.  I am rather proud that the day's voting was back and forth with our poems’ votes, and thought both were good.  The interesting part that sometimes happened with the pairings is that unbeknownst to each other, some, like Donna and me, wrote poems that were quite similar in content; ours were both about animals and the way they behave.  What serendipity!

Here is my poem, and here is the link to Donna’s.  Her word was prowl.

Paternity Patience 

The emperor penguin does not ignore


His given chore,  of perilous paternity.


He stands and waits.  He waits and stands.


It seems for all eternity.
 


While the momma empress swims for need


And gobbles feed, expressing her maternity.


She glides and dives; she dives and glides.


It appears with taciturnity.

 Keep watching.  The next 16 pairings happen soon!

photo credit: Martha de Jong-Lantink via photopin cc